NTSB Releases Preliminary Report on Reno Midair

The NTSB has released the preliminary report on the investigation into the midair collision that ended the Reno Air Races last month.

Meg Godlewski

Wednesday, October 11, 2023 at 04:16 PM ET

Verified

[Courtesy of the National Transportation Safety Board]

Key Takeaways:

The NTSB's preliminary report details a fatal midair collision between two T-6 aircraft (Race 6, "Six Cat," and Race 14, "Baron's Revenge") at the Reno Air Races on September 17, which killed both pilots as they returned to land.
Witness accounts, primarily from a third pilot, indicate both aircraft simultaneously transmitted "downwind, abeam" and were observed flying uncoordinated patterns (one wider, one tighter) shortly before the collision.
Wreckage analysis revealed a long debris path and severe structural damage to both planes, with parts of one aircraft found commingled with the other, consistent with a high-angle midair impact, though the final report is still pending.

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The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released the preliminary report on the investigation into the midair collision that ended the Reno Air Races last month. Both pilots were killed in the accident that took place on September 17. The race had concluded, and both pilots were returning to land on Runway 8.

The report refers to the aircraft involved by their race numbers. Race 6, which is the North American T-6G, N2897G (Six Cat), and Race 14, North American AT-6B, N57418 (Baron’s Revenge).